THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



225 



loss of 11 single bud, and my trees are 

 now (August 2Uth) laden with beauti- 

 ful golden yellow fruit almost ripe 

 enough for the harvest. It is the earli- 

 est ripener I have yet grown, and being 

 undoubtedly hardy is a very valuable 

 a.nd desirable tree to plant. 



The Peach of Montreal, as well as 

 the Alexander, can also be highly 

 recommended for extreme northern 

 sections. 



You will doubtless be surpi-ised to 

 learn that the Duchess of Oldenburg has 

 this season not sustained its well-earned 

 reputation for hardiness and endurance 

 of extreme cold. Mine are not dead, 

 but strange to say that in the spring 

 they failed to leaf out as usual, but 

 instead there came quite a profusion of 

 blossom, which soon died away, leaving 

 only a bleak, leafless tree, having all 

 the appearance of a dead worthless 

 thing. In about three weeks, when 

 the later rains came on, signs of return- 

 ing life were to be seen, and in the 

 course of time new leaves appeared, 

 and although there is no fruit I have 

 hopes that the trees will yet survive 

 and be of some use to me. 



I may add that this is exaclly the 

 expeiience of several of my neighbours, 

 and applies not only to the Duchess, 

 but also the Tetofskey, Scott's Winter, 

 Canada Baldwin, Magog Red Streak, 

 and several other so-called ironclads. 



The death-rate, however, is not con- 

 fined to our older varieties, but sad 

 havoc has been made among the Rus- 

 sians. 



Experience here goes to show that 

 these ace not all by any means hardy, 

 but only after years of trial shall we 

 be able to know those that will with- 

 stand our climate. 



I may here state that I have just 

 received a letter from Mr. Wragg, of 

 Iowa, in which he also states that " a 

 very considerable weeding will have to 

 be done amoiiar the Russians before we 



shall know just what to plant." I 

 have not yet received reports from all 

 the trees of this kind that have been 

 planted in this section, but enough is 

 now known to warrant me in saying 

 that Cardinal, Belle de Boskoop, Peter 

 the Great and Red Russian are entirely 

 worthless for this section, and the same 

 Gan be said of several more that are 

 known to me only by numbers. 



Among a consignment of those trees 

 received from Prof. Budd there were 

 half a dozen pears. They came with- 

 out any number or name, and they 

 were given no great attention, as I do 

 not care to have a fruit the name of 

 which I cannot tell. However, they 

 have so far done i^emarkably well — 

 living through last winter without the 

 loss of a single bud, and as they are all 

 Russian varieties I am hopeful of some- 

 thing that we have been so long and so 

 anxiously looking for, viz., a pear that 

 will live and bear fruit in our northern 

 home. If we have found it, it will be 

 an acquisition indeed. 



More anon. A. A. Wright. 



Renfrew, August 20th, 1885. 



THE FRUIT GROWERS' ASSOCIATION. 



Dear Mr. Secretary, — I find that 

 my horticultural life would be incom- 

 plete without membership in an insti- 

 tution so useful and so national. I 

 think it is quite safe to say that the 

 Fruit Growers' Association of Ontario 

 with its organ, the Canadian Horticul- 

 turist, well represents and gives body 

 and voice to the spirit of rural refine- 

 ment in Canada. But more than that, 

 it is a factor of the highest value in 

 develojjing those sources of m ealth and 

 of beauty, which together more than 

 any other thing must yet make our 

 Canada the most delightful land in 

 which to live. 



Yours truly, 



S. p. MOKSE. 



Miltou, August, 1885. 



